Utilizing GIS for Data

Managementwith Water Utilities

Presented by Christen Callahan, GIS ANALYST

May 2018

Overview

▪ City of DeLand

▪ Develop a document

management system and

enterprise GIS for water

utilities

▪ Using the Esri tools to

automate the processes

▪ Putting the data to work

About DeLand

The city of DeLand is 18.8 sq. miles

▪ Founded by Henry A. DeLand in 1876

▪ Known as the “Athens of Florida”

▪ Home to the Stetson University

▪ Utility boundary: 90.3 sq. miles

▪ 36.2 sq. miles of existing utilities

▪ The water system is the largest containing

23,000 service connections

http://www.deland.org/Pages/DeLandFL_Heritage/DeLandHistory

Main street DeLand

DeLand’s Needs

▪ Document and manage as-built

plans and record drawings

▪ A GIS based mapping system of

the City’s existing utilities

including:

– Sanitary Sewer

– Stormwater

– Potable Water

– Reclaimed Water

▪ Accessibility to view information

on desktop, tablet or mobile

device

Reasons for the Project

Institutional

Knowledge Loss

Succession

Planning

City Utility

Size Increase

Information

In-the-Field

Locate

Requests

Better Customer

Service

Better Utility

Expansion Planning

What we started with:

▪ Paper as-builts

▪ CAD Files

▪ Employee Institutional Knowledge

Developing a GIS

Staged automation approach

▪ Scan source documents

▪ Build spatial inventory and

document management system

▪ Develop enterprise GIS

▪ Automate existing systems

Scan Source Documents

Over 15,000 as-built plans and record drawings–dating back to 1927

Now available

on desktop in PDF

and JPG formats

3

Renamed with the

naming convention

chosen by the city

2

Paper drawings

were

scanned in

1

(Scanning by Melken Solutions)

Build Spatial Inventory and Document

Management System

▪ Identify which of the 15,000 as-built plans

needed to be linked to the street

centerlines

▪ Essential for starting to build the

GIS networks

▪ Cataloguing these also help the city

maintain the historical records each street

▪ All of this information is available to

the city on their desktop as well as the

through their ArcGIS Online accounts

▪ Create the GIS database including the geometric

networks properties, domains, and relationships for

the geodatabase

▪ Local Government Information Model (LGIM)–

an Esri database schema that allows you to easily

maintain public infrastructure.

– Contains pre-generated feature classes and fields you

would want in your database

– Uses industry best practices to organize and share

data within GIS datasets, web services, and maps

▪ Utilize geometric network editing tools to

streamline the data verification process

Develop an Enterprise Database

Automation of Utilities

▪ Work with the city to assemble the best available

record drawings to pull information from

– The most current is not always the best

▪ Digitize and attribute all water utility structures from

each plan

▪ Repeat until the network is compiled

– Result is a GIS that works on desktop, web and mobile

devices

As-built Plan from 1968

As-built Plan from 1954

As-built Plan from 1998

▪ As-built plans are also related to each feature

– Select a feature, view the associated details of the

feature and easily retrieve plan it was derived

from

– Streamlines the field collection/verification

process by city staff

Automation of Utilities

• Drawing in linework for meter connections can

be tedious and time consuming.

• Esri’s Add Lateral at Connection tool draws the

lateral and fitting for you.

Esri’s Water Utility

Network Editing Tool

Customizing Esri’s Water Utility

Network Editing Tool

• Client needed something to match their

connection standards

• Customized solution:

• a single service tool to account for a valve along

the line

• a double service connection to account for two

valves and additional fitting.

• a triple service connection to show where three

reclaim meters are connected to the main line at

one location, accounts for valves and fittings along

the laterals.

Field Verification Process

▪ Check-sheet grid

▪ Four teams: one for each utility

▪ Assistance from locators and meter readers

▪ Sheets are sent to VHB

▪ Final adjustments are entered and then

verified

How is the data used?

▪ Field personnel have access through ArcGIS Online via

tablets, phones, and laptops

▪ More accurate performance measures using a work

order system with GIS component

▪ Plug data into asset management system

▪ Put the data to work by using out of the box

applications that support tasks such as:

– Up and downstream gravity flow network tracing

– Flow and valve isolation for pressure systems

– Integration with billing records

– Watershed delineation

– Engineering design

2015 Pilot Project Area

Project Timeline

2016 Neighborhoods

2017 Segmented Areas

2018 Completed the City

Offices located throughout the east coast

Questions?

Christen Callahan | ccallahan@vhb.com| 407.982.4487

christen-callahan